Recently we introduced some new extra info fields on track pages, allowing you to say more stuff about your music in easier ways. Entering any extra info is of course optional but we’ve been receiving a lot of positive feedback from these new “meta-data” fields so we wanted to give you a little rundown of how to find them and work with em.

When uploading a track to SC, everything is as simple as before, but we’ve also added a little “show extra fields” button. This is where the fun starts!

Pressing it will expand a whole new set of description fields. You can specify things such as genre, BPM key of the track, and a whole lot more.

If your record label is a contact of yours on SoundCloud, they’ll will appear in the “Record label” drop-down menu. In case they’re not on SC yet, just select other and fill in their name. Or better, send them an invite and then ad them as it’ll make your track page look much nicer!

You can also add some information about the catalogue number and release date (or only year if you don’t know exactly when it’ll be out) of your track then say what sort of track it is with a few “track types”.

You can also describe your track using keywords or tags, this is quite handy for people to have an idea of what your song is about. Plus, we will soon build a full-on tagging system, so you’ll be able to find tracks via search and filters (e.g. give me all the “house” tracks in 120-130 that are “bass-heavy”).

Finally, you can add a link that leads to an online shop of your choice where people can buy your release. It works best if you ad a link that goes straight to that release and not just to a shop in general.

So, remember, all fields are optional but the more info you put up the nicer the tracks looks and it’ll help listeners find the tracks that you want to promote.

The info will be visible on the tracks page & could look a little something like this

So, be cool, add some meta.

Welcome to another chapter of the fabulous & ongoing SoundCloud saga! Working in the Clouds is not always easy, bugs need to be squashed and germanism needs getting to grips with (check out our startup mode adventures). But nevertheless, we all feel we’re slowly but surely approaching a revolutionary platform, piece by piece. This latest piece is dedicated to remixer-extraordinaire Ewan Pearson, an artist who has constantly been pushing the musical boundaries and whose recent album Piece Work regroups most of his greatest remixes.

So what’s new in the Ewan release? Well, ta-da, you asked for it and you got it – now you can now add much more information about your tracks! New fields such as “genre”, “key”, “label”, “release date”, “track type”or “keywords/tags”  allow you to give an accurate description of your music (but, of course, it’s all optional). Plus you now have the possibility to provide a direct link to an online shop of your choice that sells the track.

To add info to tracks you’ve already uploaded just head into the tracks edit mode and go for it. For new tracks you’ll have the option to add as much extra info as you like right from the regular upload page.

We’ve also reworked the “settings” page a bit, using the “Actions” menu to allow you easily jump to a specific field of information that needs changing. It is now also possible to change your user name, add additional e-mail addresses and we also support more types of Discogs links.

So, big thanks for all the support, enjoy Ewan and have an awesome weekend!

After entering Sean’s World, we’d like to invite you to learn more about the super-skillful Katharina Birkenbach. As the only german citizen who’s part of the SoundCloud team (for now!), Katharina has been with us since our beginning in May 2007 and has helped us tremendously. Here’s what she has to say concerning her involvement with SC:

• Welcome Katharina! As an introduction, could you tell us when did you start showing interest for computers and programming?

Very very late to be honest. I always considered computers ugly and preferred not to have one in my appartment. But in 2000, I finally bought my first Apple and since then i did not spend a single day without it.

• And how did you go from enjoying your first computer to working for the best music site ever?

Some years ago, I studied visual communication with the original goal to become a fashion photographer. But I lost interest in that after I got my first computer so I started making websites, something that I love and still do. I’m mainly interested in somewhat organically growing in some sort of way by learning websites, so i was happy to find myself some years later in Amsterdam working for Mediamatic, which is a design agency with a strong cultural, educational and indirect political background. After three years I returned to Berlin to set up Mediamatic Berlin, which failed and I ended up sitting in offices without airco. So i had to flee to St-Oberholz where i met Eric and that’s when he asked me to join in their office space.

• So how did SoundCloud appeal to you?

I always had an interest for music, and even though i’m completely not musical, I always try to sneak in…

• Could you briefly explain in which areas you’re working the most for the Soundcloud platform?

Well, back then in Amsterdam, I was sometimes complaining that i don’t want to be the css-meisje, which i basically am now at SoundCloud. But here it’s fun and actually very interesting.

• What sort of music do you like? What’s your favourite artists?

I don’t have a favourite artist. I like every, and I mean every, kind of music as longs as it’s good. Together with a friend of mine I had some years ago an internetradioshow and it was called “lovesongs and other tragedies”. This would be my favourite genre, I guess.

• Have you already discovered some interesting new artists via SoundCloud?

Yes. I found some weeks ago a remix of Feist’s “my moon, my man” by Tce and I really really liked it.

• Currently, most of the artists on SoundCloud are House & Techno producers. How does it feel to live in Berlin, the electronic music capital of the universe?

It’s exhausting, but lots of fun!